Using Technology to Help Students with TBI Transition from College to Employment

Materials

Overview

The incidence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in the United States is high in young adults, including veterans, in the prime of their productive years. Individuals experience recovery in some functions impacted by TBI (e.g., physical symptoms) but cognitive impairments, such as deficits with short-term memory, often remain and lead to barriers in gaining and maintaining employment. Best practices from the assistive technology field and vocational rehabilitation field can help compensate for cognitive impairments to enhance employment outcomes. However, these practices haven’t been merged to address the needs of veteran and civilian students with TBI transitioning from college to employment settings.

Kent State University, West Virginia University, Boston University and JBS International collaboratively developed “Project Career,” an interdisciplinary program that merges assistive technology and vocational rehabilitation best practices to support veteran and civilian postsecondary school students with TBI transition to employment. Funded through a five-year development grant from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, “Project Career” tests and refines a cadre of sequenced services and supports to a minimum of 150 civilian and veteran students with TBI. Devices, such as iPads, provide the technological infrastructure for providing supports and services including cognitive support technology, electronic-mentoring, case management, and follow-along support to maximize students’ career readiness and transition to employment. This presentation will describe the Matching Person and Technology Model used in the project, activities performed to help veteran and civilian students improve academic and career outcomes, and qualitative and quantitative outcomes from the first two years.

At the conclusion of this educational program, learners will be able to:

Describe barriers individuals (veterans and civilians) with TBI face in academic and work settings due to cognitive impairments

Identify how assistive technology can help compensate for cognitive impairments

Explain best practices related to the use of assistive technologies including the Matching Person and Technology Model for effectively matching students with technology